China shut down 553 small thermal power generators in 2007, with a total capacity of 14.38 million kilowatts, or 44 percent above the annual goal, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said on Monday.

Closing down small thermal power plants is part of the nation's energy saving and pollution reduction efforts. The State Council, or cabinet, set the annual goal of shutting down 10 million kilowatts thermal power capacity at the beginning of 2007, which had been achieved by October 26, 2007.

On average, these closed generators have a single-set capacity of 26,000 kilowatts and have been operating for 28 years.

After shutting down the obsolete facilities, large thermal power generators (single-set capacity exceeds 50,000 kilowatts) will take the place of generating power. The large-scale facilities will help the country save 18.8 million tons of coal consumption and avoid emitting 290 thousand tons of sulphur dioxide and 37.6 million tons of carbon dioxide every year, according to an official with NDRC.

Shangdong, Henan, Guangdong, Jiangsu and Shanxi are the top five provincial regions in this shut-down drive -- having closed 6.7 million kilowatts thermal power capacity, accounting for 46.6 percent of the total.

China's top five power enterprises, local investment corporations and local state-owned enterprises made the overwhelming majority of the efforts by shutting down 256 thermal power generators, or 10.5 million kilowatts in capacity, accounting for 73.1 percent of the total, while the remaining 26.9 percent came from private enterprises.

NDRC is a macro-economic management agency under China's State Council, which formulates polices and guides the overall economic system restructuring.

(Xinhua News Agency January 2, 2008)